Sights in Panama City
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Casco Viejo
Following the destruction of the old city by Henry Morgan in 1671, the Spanish moved their city 8km southwest to a rocky peninsula on the foot of Cerro Ancón. The new location was easier to defend as the reefs prevented ships from approaching the city except at high tide. The new city was also easy to defend as it was surrounded by a massive wall, which is how Casco Viejo got its name.
In 1904, when construction began on the Panama Canal, all of Panama City existed where Casco Viejo stands today. However, as population growth and urban expansion pushed the boundaries of Panama City further east, the city's elite abandoned Casco Viejo, and the neighborhood rapidly deterio…
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Panamá Viejo Ruins
The center of power resided at the Casas Reales (Royal House), a complex ringed by timber ramparts and separated from the city proper by a moat. Within the complex were the customs house, the royal treasury, a prison and the governor's house. Despite the obvious historical importance of the site, past governments have allowed sections of the property to be used as a landfill and for horse stables. Only scattered walls remain of the once-impressive structures.
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Cathedral of Our Lady of Asunción), built between 1619 and 1626, is the best-preserved building of the ruins. In traditional fashion, it was designed so that its two sid…
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Parque Natural Metropolitano
Up on a hill to the north of downtown, the 265-hectare Parque Natural Metropolitano protects vast expanses of tropical semideciduous forest within the city limits, and serves as an incredible wilderness escape from the trappings of the capital. It has two main walking trails, the Nature Trail and the Tití Monkey Trail, which join to form one long loop.
The loop is also home to a 150m-high mirador (lookout) that offers panoramic views of Panama City, the bay and the canal all the way to the Miraflores Locks.
Mammals in the park include tití monkeys, anteaters, sloths and white-tailed deer, while reptiles include iguanas, turtles and tortoises. More than 250 known bird sp…
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Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas
The Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas, a marine exhibitions center operated by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), includes an informative marine museum with signs in English and Spanish, two small aquariums and a nature trail through a patch of dry forest containing sloths and iguanas.
There are many exhibits at the center, including a small six-sided building with sweeping views of the Bahía de Panamá that was built by Noriega for intimate gatherings. Today it houses a museum containing exhibits on the history of Panama's indigenous cultures.
At the museum you can also learn about the role that Panama's marine resources play in the country's economy, and t…
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Panama Canal Murals
The story of the monumental effort to build the Panama Canal is powerfully depicted in murals mounted in the rotunda of the Panama Canal Administration Building.
The murals tell the story of the canal's construction through four main scenes: the digging of Gaillard Cut at Gold Hill, where the canal passes through the Continental Divide; the building of the spillway of the Gatún Dam, which dammed the Río Chagres and created Lago Gatún; the construction of one of the giant lock gates (the canal uses some 80 of these gates); and the construction of the Miraflores Locks near the Pacific entrance to the canal. A frieze located immediately below the murals presents a panorama o…
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Calzada
At the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal, a 2km palm tree-lined Calzada connects the four small islands of Naos, Culebra, Perico and Flamenco to the mainland. The Causeway is the popular place to be in the early morning and late afternoon when residents head here to walk, jog, skate, and cycle or simply escape the noise and pollution of the city.
The Causeway also offers sweeping views of the skyline and the old city, and you can see flocks of brown pelicans diving into the sea here most times of the year. Others arrive here simply to savor the pleasant breeze at one of the Causeway's many restaurants and bars.
At the Causeway entrance, Bicicletas Rali operates a booth…
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Plaza De Francia
At the tip of the southern point is Plaza de Francia, which displays large stone tablets and statues dictating the story (in Spanish) of the French role in the construction of the canal. The plaza is dedicated to the memory of the 22,000 workers, most of them from France, Guadeloupe and Martinique, who died trying to create the canal.
Most were killed by yellow fever and malaria, and among the busts is a monument to the Cuban doctor Carlos J Finlay, who discovered how mosquitoes transmit yellow fever. His work led to the eradication of the disease in Panama.
On one side of the plaza are nine restored dungeons that were used by the Spaniards and later by the Colombians. Alt…
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Iglesia de San José
Iglesia de San José protects the famous Altar de Oro (Golden Altar), which was about the only thing of value salvaged after Henry Morgan sacked Panamá Viejo. According to local legend, when word came of the pirate's impending attack, a priest attempted to disguise the altar by painting it black. The priest told Morgan that the famous altar had been stolen by another pirate, and even convinced Morgan to donate handsomely for its replacement.
Morgan is said to have told the priest, 'I don't know why, but I think you are more of a pirate than I am.' Whatever the truth, the baroque altar was later moved from the old city to the present site.
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Baha'i House of Worship
On the outskirts of Panama City, 11km from the city center on the Transisthmian Hwy, the white-domed Baha'i House of Worship looms like a giant egg atop the crest of a hill. The inside is surprisingly beautiful, with a fresh breeze always present. The Baha'i House of Worship serves all of Latin America.
Information about the faith is available at the temple in English and Spanish; readings from the Baha'i writings (also in English and Spanish) are held Sunday mornings at 10:00. Any bus to Colón can let you off on the highway, but it's a long walk up the hill. A taxi from Panama City costs around USaround US$10.
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Museo de Arte Religioso Colonial
Housed beside the ruins of the Iglesia y Convento de Santo Domingo, this art museum has a collection of colonial-era religious artifacts, some dating from the 16th century. Just inside the doorway of the ruins is the Arco Chato, a long arch that had stood here, unsupported, for centuries.
The Arco Chato reportedly played a part in the selection of Panama over Nicaragua as the site for the canal since its survival was taken as proof that the area was not subject to earthquakes. Sadly, it collapsed in 2003.
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Parque Bolívar
In 1826, in a schoolroom opposite Parque Bolívar, Simón Bolívar held a meeting urging the union of the Latin American countries. After many struggles against Spanish domination, Bolívar succeeded in liberating Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela, and he created Gran Colombia, which encompassed all these states. Although Bolívar was unable to keep Gran Colombia together, he is nonetheless venerated as a hero throughout Latin America.
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Marine Exhibitions Center
Operated by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), the Marine Exhibitions Centre includes an informative marine museum with signs in English and Spanish, two small aquariums and a nature trail through a patch of dry forest containing sloths and iguanas.
At the museum you can also learn about the role that Panama's marine resources play in the country's economy, and the destructive and wasteful effects of harvesting fish and shrimp by net.
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Fuerte Amador Resort & Marina
At the end of Isla Flamenco, you'll find one of the city's newest attractions, the Fuerte Amador Resort & Marina. This complex contains a two-story shopping center (the Flamenco Shopping Center), a marina, a cruise ship terminal and a number of restaurants and bars. At night, these open-air spots are a big draw, providing a fine setting for cocktails or a decent meal. At the marina, daily boats leave for the nearby resort island of Isla Taboga.
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Mi Pueblito
At the foot of Cerro Ancón, on the western side of town, Mi Pueblito features life-size replicas of rural villages found on the Península de Azuero, in Bocas del Toro and in the Darién. It also features extensive shops selling handicrafts from throughout the country and a handful of decent restaurants. Folk dances accompanied by live music are staged on Friday and Saturday at around 18:00 - they're touristy but still worth a look.
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Museo del Canal Interoceánico
The impressive Museo del Canal Interoceánico is housed in a beautifully restored building that once served as the headquarters for the original French canal company. The Panama Canal Museum (as it's more commonly known) presents excellent exhibits on the famous waterway, framed in its historical and political context. Signs are in Spanish, but English-speaking guides and audio tours (around US$5) are available.
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Teatro Nacional
Built in 1907, the interior of the ornate Teatro Nacional has been completely restored, and boasts red and gold decorations, a once-magnificent ceiling mural by Roberto Lewis (one of Panama's finest painters) and an impressive crystal chandelier. Performances are still held here - to find out about them, or just to have a look at the theater, go around to the office door at the side of the building.
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Museo de Sitio Panamá Viejo
Adjacent to the Mercado Nacional de Artesanías is the Museo de Sitio Panamá Viejo, which contains a rather impressive scale model of Panamá Viejo prior to 1671 as well as a few surviving colonial artifacts. All signs are in Spanish, though a brochure and tape recording recount the site's history in English.
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Club de Clases y Tropas
The abandoned Club de Clases y Tropas was once the favorite hangout of General Noriega, though it was virtually destroyed during the 1989 invasion. Some fresh paint was selectively applied in early 2000, when scenes from the movie The Tailor of Panama were filmed here.
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Paseo las Bóvedas
Paseo las Bóvedas is the esplanade that runs along the top of the sea wall built by the Spanish to protect the city. From here, you can see the Puente de las Américas arching over the waterway and the ships lining up to enter the canal.
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Museo de la Biodiversidad
Note that at the time of writing, construction on the Museo de la Biodiversidad, designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry, was well underway. This much-anticipated museum will be located at the tip of the Causeway.
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Instituto Nacional de Cultura
Instituto Nacional de Cultura is responsible for maintaining the country's museums and other cultural institutions. There is a small gallery on the 1st floor that displays works by Panamanian artists.
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Museo Afro-Antilleano
The small Museo Afro-Antilleano has exhibits on the history of Panama's West Indian community, particularly their work building the railroad and later the canal.
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Museo Antropológico Reina Torres de Araúz
The Museo Antropológico Reina Torres de Araúz conveys the rich cultural heritage of Panama with a collection of pre-Colombian artifacts and exhibits.
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Museo de Historia Panamá
The modest Museo de Historia Panamá has a small selection of exhibits covering Panamanian history from the colonial period to the modern era.
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Plaza de la Independencia
Plaza de la Independencia is the heart of Casco Viejo, and was the site where Panama declared its independence from Colombia on November 3, 1903.
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